I've been going through a lot of hard lately.

Blossom's progressing disease.
Balto had another bad week which, thankfully, turned out to be colitis.
Dad sick again; diagnosed with another kidney infection.
Mom....mom had a tough week with her mobility.  And...a shooting pain that we are going to have the doctor check out today.
My brother's company warned of another round of layoffs.
9 out of the last 12 days have involved taking someone to therapy, a doctor appointment or a hair appointment.

There is good news:
Blossom is still with us and is very happy.
Balto's colitis...and his hotspot...have cleared up.  He's a happy boy again.
Dad's kidney infection is responding to antibiotics and he feels better.
Mom's home health occupational therapy starts today.
Kevin survived another round of layoffs.
I am getting lots of tomatoes out of my garden!

Yesterday, I went to see my dentist for my 6 month cleaning.  I was almost sent home as they said my temperature was 99.3.  99.3 is not a fever for me.  I know this because of my past years of being a hypochondriac and taking my temperature so often!  I am sure that some of it had to do with sitting in my hot car for 10 minutes before I went inside.  We were told not to come into the building until the exact moment of our appointment.  The receptionist took my temperature twice, told me that 99.4 was the cutoff and for me to stay away from her.  The good news is that I received a great report and there were NO cavities!  

Blossom loves her trips to therapy.

Independence Day 2020 Style

While at my parents' house tonight, I noticed Mom was watching Christmas in July on the Hallmark Channel.  I guess we are halfway to Christmas now.  

The Paw Patrol is always on duty at my house.  

It's Still 2020

How are you?  In some ways, every week feels like both a battle and an accomplishment these days.  

Blossom made it through another week!  She even went to physical therapy for the first time since March.  The doctor said that she hadn't really lost any muscle mass.  The problem is the communication from her brain to her spinal cord.  Please forgive the photo overload as she is currently the most photographed dog in the world.  Our girl even managed to go up and down the stairs a few times this week; she's a fighter.  She's still able to walk around and at times, she even runs.  It isn't pretty but it is beautiful to me.  

I Have a Pet Snake

That's a sentence I never thought I'd say.  Actually, it isn't true.  That being said...meet Gartie, my Garter Snake.  

Pandemic Blues

How are you doing today?  It's Sunday night and I've got a case of the Pandemic Blues.  I enjoyed a wonderfully relaxing weekend with plenty of family time but, reality has hit me that this virus is not going anywhere anytime soon.  Cases in North Carolina continue on an upward trend.  People are struggling.  I long for the days I can spend quality time with people I love and give them a long bear hug.  I'm supposed to be in Vermont right now.  Deanna and I had plane tickets to spend this week  exploring Vermont and Maine.  Thankfully, we have until December 31, 2021 to reschedule our flights without losing any money.  If any of my Vermont friends are reading this....I hope to see you as soon as things are safe.

Blossom is living her best life even though her back legs are so confused.  She is so loved and so spoiled.

June Something

We made it through the first week of June.  How are you doing?  I'm not 100% sure how I would answer that question.  I feel like I'm an alien in a world that I may or may not have visited before.  The bubble that I live in seems somewhat the same but, everything else seems changed.  

I saw this beautiful girl today for the first time in weeks.  She was as happy as always.  Today she said, "No open the door", "Dishwasher", "Ice Cream" and "Cheese".  Same ol' Laura.